


The Aftermath

by ananbeth



Series: mob au [11]
Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: Established Relationship, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Implied Sexual Content, Mob AU, Mob Boss Annabeth Chase, also mention of a knife because annabeth using a butterfly knife is very valid, companion piece to Sophii's recent fic!, im so utterly obsessed with this au thank u soph for asking me to write this <3, the angst is very very light dw, there's descriptions of injuries but no violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-13
Updated: 2020-09-13
Packaged: 2021-03-07 00:26:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,225
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26447776
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ananbeth/pseuds/ananbeth
Summary: Written as a companion piece to Sophii's recent fic which is linked below. This is what happened after Percy was rescued. [Mob Boss AU]
Relationships: Annabeth Chase/Percy Jackson
Series: mob au [11]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1102638
Comments: 9
Kudos: 260





	The Aftermath

**Author's Note:**

  * For [blackjacktheboss](https://archiveofourown.org/users/blackjacktheboss/gifts).
  * Inspired by [Play Time](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26432521) by [blackjacktheboss](https://archiveofourown.org/users/blackjacktheboss/pseuds/blackjacktheboss). 



Annabeth had taught herself to compartmentalise from a young age. She was an overly emotional child, often finding herself crying from frustration and in times of anger, unable to express what or why she was feeling what she was. This line of work had forced her to press a pause on those overwhelming emotions to allow her to focus on what needed to be done. It wasn't that she wasn't often driven by her emotions, it was just that she had practiced a certain amount of control which ensured that her decisions were methodical and pragmatic too.

She wasn’t sure she had ever felt so much rage in her life when she had read that note which told her - though not explicitly - that Percy had been taken. _Anger comes second,_ her mother’s voice schooled her inside her own head, _tell me what came before that._

Fear.

Pure, unadulterated fear. That she would lose him, had lost him. That he was hidden somewhere out of her reach in the hands of some asshole who would hurt him to get what they wanted. She knew from Percy’s stories that he had been in some unpleasant situations before, but never because of her. She feared for his safety, for his life. Mostly, she feared that she would never get to see the shape of his smile again, or feel the way he held her, or enjoy the way he loved her.

So when she stood in front of the man who had tried to take this love away from her, who had used Percy as nothing more than bait, as a source of information, the anger she felt nearly overwhelmed her. But she didn’t let it. She had a job to do and then she would go home, to the love of her life who was safe, now. This man would enjoy no such luxuries.

“Are you going to kill me now, Miss Chase?” the General asked in a slow, derisive tone.

Annabeth allowed herself to smile as she crossed her arms over her chest and looked down at him. He was tied to the very chair that Percy had been bound to minutes earlier, and already had a split lip which was weeping blood onto his chin. 

“I don’t know how much you know about me, Mr General, but I want you to know that I am not wasteful.”

“Do you always have such qualms over committing your crimes, Miss Chase? It is a wonder you are as successful as you are. Or maybe it’s all a farce?”

He was trying to bait her. Annabeth allowed herself another smirk. She pulled out a small butterfly knife which she had kept tucked in the pocket of her pants and started cleaning out some dirt from under her nail.

“I want you to understand that I would cut your throat with this and not lose a single moment of sleep over it.” She met his eyes and flicked the knife around a few times, watching the man’s eyes dart to the silver blade as it whipped around furiously in Annabeth’s hand. “But your death would be wasteful, and as I mentioned-”

“You are not wasteful.”

She snapped the blade closed again and leaned forward. “Very good.”

“So what will you do with me?”

Annabeth pocketed the knife and, with a gloved hand, took the folded note from Connor who had appeared at her shoulder. She watched the General as she leaned over to tuck the small piece of paper into the pocket of his suit. Then she straightened and spared him one last look.

“I’m going to let you serve your purpose.”

Then she turned on her heel and left the hangar, satisfied that the older man didn’t even have a response to shout at her retreating back.

* * *

The house was quiet when she walked through the doors with Connor and Travis in tow. She dismissed them both, mildly annoyed by their hovering, and sighed when she found Charles waiting for her in the upstairs hallway. He would usually be waiting in her office, but clearly realised that she had other priorities tonight. The look on his face would be indiscernible to anybody else but Annabeth knew him too well to see anything other than the truth.

“Percy is in your room,” he spoke before she could and she nodded, not pausing as she continued down the hallway. Charles turned to walk with her.

“Thank you for bringing him back here.”

“He didn't want to go anywhere else.”

She stopped then and looked at him. “And if he had? Would you have taken him home, if he had wanted that?”

Charles watched her for a moment. “He didn’t want that.”

“That’s not answering my question.”

“Seems like a needless question.”

Annabeth cursed and grit her teeth as she glared at the ground instead of Charles. Her composure had softened and the anger from before was making her eyes sting. The fear was back.

“I can’t keep him prisoner in order to keep him safe.”

“Annabeth.” He waited until she met his gaze again. “Is he a prisoner if he wants to be here?”

She sighed but nodded, to let him know she was listening to him. His hand came down on her shoulder then, a gentle reassurance, and squeezed.

“You alright, boss?”

She held her hand over his for a moment. “All good. Goodnight, Charles.”

He appraised her for another moment before nodding. “Good night.”

* * *

The bedroom door was cracked open and Annabeth nudged it open a little more to lean against the doorframe. On her large bed sat Percy, facing away from her, as the doctor spoke to him in a quiet voice which Annabeth strained to hear.

“Just rest, and take these. I’ll check in on you in the morning, but you’ll be fine.”

She stood, patting Percy’s shoulder, and caught Annabeth’s eye. Percy looked up and over his shoulder, following her gaze and she couldn’t ignore the way his face lit up when he saw her, like it had in the warehouse. She watched as his expression dropped a moment later, worry crowding in, and felt her chest constrict.

The doctor gave her a small nod as she passed and Annabeth waited for her footsteps to fade down the hallway before stepping inside the room fully and closing the door. Percy busied himself swallowing the pills and a swig of water while Annabeth removed her boots and walked over to the bed. She crawled onto the opposite corner to where he was sitting and stayed on her knees, keeping herself compact as she watched him lean back against the pillows again. She couldn't help but wince at the state of his face. He had some tape over his left eyebrow, below which the skin around the socket of his eye was swollen and tinged blue. His jaw had another blooming bruise mottling his usually lovely skin and his lip was split.

“How are you feeling?” she asked him, her voice sounding quiet in the large space.

Percy nodded. “All good. Doc says I have a mild concussion, nothin’ to write home about.”

“Good.”

“How about the other guy?”

“Hm?”

“The General?”

“Oh.” Annabeth shifted. “He’s taken care of, don’t worry.”

Percy raised his eyebrows. “Did you kill him?”

The levelness of his tone was hard to ignore. Annabeth shook her head.

“I thought Detective Grace should have an early birthday gift.”

“So generous.”

“I am. Might have roughed him up a little, first.”

“Well, I did promise him that you would.”

“I’m a woman of my word.”

“That you are.”

A quiet moment as they watched each other carefully. Annabeth couldn’t figure out what he was thinking which unsettled her. She had become particularly good at reading Percy over the past several months but his face now was inscrutable and her own emotions rang too loudly in her head for her to try and decipher his too.

“Percy, I’m so sorry.”

He sighed, like he had been waiting for this and reached out a hand towards her.

“Please come over here?”

She did as he asked, shuffling across the bed so that she kneeled next to him, still not touching him. He dropped his hand, using it to extricate one of her hands from her lap.

“This wasn’t your fault. And I'm okay. And I’m not going anywhere.”

Annabeth closed her eyes at his words and squeezed his hands with both of hers. He was here. She let the fear subside. When she opened her eyes again he was looking at her with a worried expression, and she knew exactly what he was thinking now, but he spoke again before she could.

“Don’t end us because of this, Annabeth. I love you. I knew this was a risk when I chose to be with you. I’ll do whatever, I’ll let Connor escort me everywhere if that’s what it takes-”

“Oh, you’re obviously getting a tail at all times now,” she interrupted him.

He stopped and looked at her with mild surprise, clearly thinking that he was going to have to convince her to stay with him. She hated that he felt like he had to fight for them. Annabeth held his hand between hers, stroking her thumbs over his knuckles.

“I want you to move in with me,” she told him, and watched his expression shift from confusion to surprise to doubt in a matter of seconds. He didn’t pull his hand away but she watched him retract a little and tried to ignore the way her heart squeezed painfully in response.

“Annabeth, I… I’d love to live with you, fuck, I spend most of my nights here anyway. But- I don't want to move in just so it’s convenient. This is important, it’s...it’s significant. To me, anyway.”

“It is to me as well,” she said with some urgency. “Percy I- I’m not asking this because I want to keep you under lock and key. What happened just made me realise how much I want to live with you. I’d move into that box you call an apartment, if that’s what you really wanted. I just want to be with you.”

He looked at her, his expression having lost some of the worry that had etched lines into his forehead, pinched between his eyebrows which were now risen at her.

“You wouldn’t last a week living there.”

She rolled her eyes, glad he had relaxed enough to tease her. “I would. For you.”

Percy let himself smile and Annabeth shuffled closer. She lifted a careful hand to his face, keeping hold of his hand in her lap with her other hand, and cupped his cheek with exaggerated carefulness. 

“That day in the cabin at Montauk, I know that was you choosing to stay. I know you were telling me that you were all in.” She watched Percy’s eyes soften as she spoke. “I realise never gave you that in return. But this is me telling you. I’m all in, Perce.”

Percy’s breath spilled out in the small space between them and he looked at her with something akin to wonder. In the soft light of the lamp on the bedside table, he looked warm and inviting. His eyes a deep colour she associated with being in this bed with him, with rumpled sheets and sweaty skin and being held in a way that let her know just how loved she was.

Slowly, he linked his fingers through hers and she felt her heart truly settle in her chest. Annabeth let herself move forward and rest her forehead against his, careful to avoid the left side of his face.

“I’m so in love with you, it’s stupid,” he told her.

Annabeth laughed but didn’t let herself move away from him. “I’m so in love with you, too.”

He leaned up to kiss her but she only let him peck her lips before pulling away. She touched the corner of his mouth, just next to the split.

“Careful,” she said.

Percy huffed and reached for her in earnest. “Come here,” he said gruffly, and then she was being manhandled into his lap.

Annabeth let herself settle there, confident that he wasn’t injured anywhere but his face, and let him hold both of her hands, linking their fingers. She raised an eyebrow at him.

“What’s your plan, Jackson?”

“Well,” he said, letting his head tilt to the side like he was pondering some philosophical question. “Doc said I shouldn’t sleep for more than a couple of hours at a time.”

She felt herself smiling at him. “I’m sure that can be arranged.”

“I was hoping you would say that. And what about you?”

“Hm?”

“What’s your plan?”

Annabeth leaned forward and kissed the uninjured side of his jaw, she let her lips trace the skin of his throat as he moved his chin up and pressed another kiss to the strong line of his clavicle.

Not moving her mouth away from his skin, she murmured, “I’m going to make you feel so good that you forget anybody else ever laid their hands on you.”

And well, she was a woman of her word.

* * *

_You can get lost tonight_ _  
_ _In your room_ _  
_ _Doing what we do_   
_Forget about the world outside_ _  
_ Just four walls and my body on you.

**Author's Note:**

> thank u soph for asking me to write this, as always, it was the most fucking fun. I adore this au and you <3


End file.
